“Meat Puzzle” - #035 – When a string of murders point at one of their own as the next victim, the NCIS team pulls out everything they have to protect the medical examiner, on NCIS Tuesday, February 8, 2005 (8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT) on CBS. Terrance O’Hara directed the episode written by Frank Military.

Having spent many hours re-assembling the pieces of two bodies that were found in a barrel near Bethesda, Ducky realizes that they are familiar faces.  The corpses turn out to be civil servants who worked on a rape and murder case ten years ago.  Gibbs and the team immediately suspect Vincent Hanlan who was found guilty of the crime and served eight years in prison.  After some investigation, the team learns that they need to keep looking for the killer as Vincent died in a car crash two years earlier.

Gibbs believes Ducky could be next on the killer’s hit list as he too had provided damning evidence during the original case.  Tony is assigned the task of guarding Ducky’s aged mother, while Kate watches over Ducky.  Gibbs and McGee continue with the questioning, which includes Vincent’s very bitter and angry mother.  The story takes a dramatic turn when Ducky disappears right from under Kate’s nose and the team must do everything in their power to get him back before it is too late.